What happens to my insurance if I deregister my car?

Fees and premiums around deregistration, 2026.

The registration office (Zulassungsstelle) informs your insurer. The contract stays in place and switches to dormant cover, so you pay nothing during that time. Premiums you already paid in advance are usually refunded pro rata or set off against the next bill.

Vehicle tax (Kfz-Steuer) also stops. Customs refunds any overpaid tax, provided they have your bank details.

Do not cancel the policy yourself if you plan to drive the car again. Dormant cover keeps your contract and your no-claims class.

Liability stays in force, and if you had partial (Teilkasko) or comprehensive cover (Vollkasko), partial cover continues. That covers theft, fire, storm, hail and glass damage to the parked car. Comprehensive cover is paused, so damage you cause yourself, for example while moving the car in the garage, is not paid.

The key condition is where the car is kept. Under the model conditions of the German insurers' association it must be in an enclosed space such as a garage, or on a plot surrounded by a fence, wall or hedge. An open driveway or an unfenced carport is not enough, and the insurer may refuse to pay.

Your no-claims class (Schadenfreiheitsklasse) is kept. The model conditions say: a break of up to six months counts as if nothing happened; up to twelve months your class stays as it was; after that one claim-free year is deducted for each further calendar year started; after more than seven years the discount is gone.

Some insurers are more generous. One drawback remains: in a year in which the car was off the road for a long time, you often do not move up a class.

It pays off if the car will stand for several months, for example while you are abroad, during a long repair or over winter for a second car.

For a couple of weeks it is hardly worth it. Under the model conditions a break of less than two weeks does not trigger dormant cover. If you pause at the same time every year, a seasonal plate (Saisonkennzeichen) is simpler. If you sell the car, the policy passes to the buyer; if you scrap it, the policy ends, so you do not need dormant cover at all.